Conte coy on Morata rumours

Antonio Conte responded to questions about Chelsea's reported interest Alvaro Morata by insisting he prefers to keep the club's transfer business private.

Despite picking up his first win as the Blues boss with a comfortable 3-0 victory over RZ Pellets WAC in Austria on Wednesday, reporters were more interested in persistent rumours linking the club to Morata than the result of the pre-season clash.

However, Conte was not prepared to shed any light on the matter.

"About this situation, I always prefer to speak with the club," he said. "We know our targets and the most important thing is there is a great synergy between me and the club on the transfer market.

"It's not important to speak outside, but to keep the secret is very important at this moment."

The Italian tactician was pleased with the improvements he saw in his team following a 2-0 loss to Rapid Vienna last weekend, but knows there is still plenty of work to be done ahead of the start of the new Premier League season next month.

"I said to my players before the game, after a week of physical work and tactical work, I wanted to see an improvement in our idea of football. I think today I received a good answer," he added.

"I know we can improve – not that we can improve – I know we must improve. We will work very hard and I know these players have the attitude to do this.

"We are at the beginning of the season and we are working hard. Today I saw a lot of good things, but I also saw situations where we can improve; that's normal when we are in pre-season.

"It's important to win and to fight for our mentality despite many players being tired. I'm happy because I saw a good attitude and for me, this is the most important thing."